Always Something More
by ArtisticLullaby
Summary: AU. Detectives Dean Ambrose and Veronica Chambers are called in for what could be the most gruesome homicide of the year. What happens when it turns out to be much more than just a triple homicide and there's more for these two detectives to uncover? Rated for language. Title will be changed once I come up with something better.
1. Chapter 1

Being one of the guys was something she held close to her chest. Being the youngest of five children, the rest being boys, being one of the guys came easy to her. Getting boyfriends wasn't hard for her, but the relationships never lasted because she was one of the guys at work and her boyfriends were constantly jealous. She had just broken up with a guy because he couldn't handle it.

But when she walked into work, none of that mattered. Inside that building, she was Detective Veronica Chambers, one of the best in the homicide division. With that badge on her hip, she was close to invincible, and the boyfriends didn't matter to her, because she had a fantastic job and great friends.

"Ronnie."

"Dean." She greeted her partner as she flopped into her desk that was pushed against his and mimicked his relaxed position, feet on the desk and crossed at the ankle.

Dean Ambrose was an attractive guy. He gave off the "bad boy" vibes and didn't really give a shit about anything. His sandy blonde hair was always neatly combed back and his blue eyes seemed to always shine bright, despite the smirk that almost always sat on his face. He was cocky, confident, fit, and really funny. He always knew just how to make her smile on her shittiest days. They'd been partners for five years, the first few months were rocky because he didn't like to let people in and she didn't like that smirk. But once they hit it off, they got close.

"How's the latest shithead?" He asked, tossing her the latest issue of a gun magazine he subscribed to that they both like.

"We broke up about twenty minutes ago." She stated simply, opening the magazine to the page he had dog eared.

"Aw, why?" She looked over the magazine and saw that smirk, meaning that he wasn't at all upset about them breaking up.

"He couldn't handle worrying about the fact that I really only hang out with guys. So I told him that it was so much easier being around guys because they don't give me bullshit drama, and if every time I want to talk to him, he's going to force me into drama, then he could get the fuck out of my life."

"You go, girl!" Seth Rollins, another homicide detective and friend of hers, cheered as he set a cup of coffee on her desk and sat on their joined desks. She took a drink and shrugged, tossing the magazine back to Dean.

"Thanks for the coffee, Rollins."

"No problem, Ronnie."

"Where's Reigns?" Dean asked and Rollins shrugged as Veronica looked over to where Seth and Roman's desks sat, frowning when the large Samoan wasn't sleeping at his desk like usual.

"He didn't call in, so he's either late or fired."

"It's not like Reigns to be late." Veronica murmured, looking up to her coworkers. Dean nodded and Seth shrugged, both catching on to her worried gaze. But it was all washed away when the large Samoan entered the room, eliciting relieved sighs from the three other detectives.

"What?" He asked and Ronnie shrugged.

"I was worried. You're a punctual guy, Reigns." He smiled down at the small brunette and pat her head.

"Don't you worry, beautiful, I'd call if anything bad happened. Rollins, you have paperwork to finish." She smiled up at him and nodded.

"Fuck you, Roman. But yeah, we'll chat later." Dean and Ronnie nodded as Seth hopped off of their desks and made his way to his and Roman's desks on the other side of the large office.

"Since when have you been interested in my relationships?" Ronnie asked and Dean shrugged.

"I just hate it when you cry. You may be a bitch at times, but I do care about you, sweetheart." She smiled and he pointed a long finger at her. "But don't think that I'll be your counselor, you little shit. That'll always be Roman's job." She shook her head with a grin, leaning back in her chair as Dean chuckled.

"I wouldn't ever think that the great Dean Ambrose would want me to cry on his shoulder." He opened his mouth to reply, but was cut off by their boss, Lieutenant Van Dam.

"Ambrose, Chambers! Triple homicide, two fifty fifty second street, apartment five b." The duo nodded, grabbing their badges and guns and heading out the door quickly and into Ambrose's '67 Impala. They took their sweet time getting there, though, which confused Veronica, but she wasn't going to question him.

"What about your relationship endeavors?"

"What relationships? I'm a 'one night stand with some random whore in a bar' type of guy. You know this, Ronnie."

"What about that patrol cop?"

"She was a lesbian in denial." He explained with a smirk, which made a smirk crawl onto Veronica's face.

"Or you turned her lesbian." He looked over at her, mouth open in shock that she would suggest such a thing. She jokingly pressed two fingers to his chin and closed his mouth. "You'll catch flies like that, hon."

"You're a bitch."

"And you're a dick, funny how great of a team we make."

"Birds of a feather."

"Now and forever."

"You totally just quoted 'Nightmare Before Christmas'." He murmured as they parked near the police cruisers.

"Fuck you, you set me up for it." She called as they exited the Impala and he flipped her off over the hood of the car before they made their way up to the apartment and under the crime scene tape.

"Holy..." Dean started, looking around, but let out a low whistle.

"Shit." Veronica finished, sticking her arm out before Dean accidentally stepped in a puddle of blood that already had a footprint in it.

"Thanks."

"Don't mention it. Did somebody mark this already?" She called to the CSIs on scene and one hurriedly rushed to where they were before they made their way to the first body that was being tended to by the coroner.

"Got a TOD?" Dean asked and the coroner nodded.

"About three am. Neighbors found the bodies."

"Cause of death?" Veronica asked and the coroner looked up at her.

"Blunt force trauma to the head, or maybe the gunshot wound to the stomach. It's hard to tell right now." She nodded and Dean got a good look at the first victim.

"Looks a lot like you, Ronnie."

"Shut the fuck up. That shits not funny."

"Good thing I'm not joking." She sighed and continued to survey the crime scene, Dean hot on her tail. "Are you bothered by that?"

"Let's go question the neighbors who found this, we're not much use in here." Dean nodded and followed her out, taking notice of how nice her rear end looked in those jeans that fit just right.

"You're totally bothered! Dude, what's the matter?" She shook her head an he pressed her against the wall, trapping her with her body. "Ronnie, I'm not doing this with you. Tell me what's up, or stop acting like a little bitch."

"It's just weird seeing someone who looks like you, but dead. I'm kind of shaken, but I can still do my job. I appreciate the concern, but I'm fine, Dean." Dean searched her olive green eyes, looking for any sign that she was lying. He found none, so he nodded and let her go.

"I'm sorry, Ronnie."

"No, you're not, but that's okay." She stated, looking up into his eyes as they made their way down the stairs and to the patrol officers. "Who found the bodies?" A patrol cop pointed to an older woman holding a cat, and she sighed.

"There a problem?" Dean asked and she nodded.

"I'm allergic to cats."

"Alright. I'll get her statement, and you wanna go talk to some of the neighbors?"

"Sounds good." They fist bumped and went their separate ways.

She met him at the top of the stairs, almost slamming directly into him.

"Woah, there, Ronnie." He soothed as he steadied her balance and let her lead him down the stairs once again. She seemed to be in a hurry and stopped her when they reached his car. "Where's the fire?"

"What?"

"You practically ran out of there, Ronnie, what's going on?"

"Nothing. I'm fine."

"You're lying."

"Can we just head back to the station, please? We've got names and addresses to look up." He sighed and nodded, getting in the car and making a mental note to ask Roman to talk to her and find out what was going on.


	2. Chapter 2

She flopped into her chair and put her head down on the desk. Seth looked at the odd sight and looked up at Dean, pointed down at Ronnie with a questioning gaze and Dean only shrugged, looking to Roman, who nodded in understanding as Dean sat down.

"Alright, sweetheart, let's get to work." Ronnie picked up her head and nodded, pulling out her notepad.

"Victim one, Kylan Collins, her name was on the lease as the sole inhabitant in the apartment, but she had a kid, who is currently with social services."

"Miss Collins has a record longer than mine when I was a kid. Guess I'm not the record holder."

"The fact that you're proud of that still amazes me." She mumbled, pulling up information on their third

"What can I say? I'm one of kind, Ronnie. What about victims two and three?"

"Victim two's face was bashed in beyond recognition, so he's a John Doe until the lab results come back, and victim three was Calypso Montrez. She just got out of prison."

"For?"

"Drug dealing."

"Most of Collins' offenses were drug related, too."

"Maybe it was a drug deal gone wrong? Neighbors reported a lot of racket going on at around two am." Veronica suggested and Dean nodded.

"In that part of town, it's our best bet. What are they doing about the kid?" She shrugged and he rose an eyebrow.

"Don't look at me like that. I'm not CPS." She stated, raising her hands in defense.

"Ambrose, Chambers, a word?" Van Dam called and the two sighed and got up from their desks, headed towards the office better known as the "Chill Zone".

Lieutenant Robert "Rob" Van Dam was a pretty laid back guy. He taught a yoga class on his off days and encouraged the detectives under his wing to take their jobs seriously, but not let their work overwhelm them. Which was why they often took naps at their desks and came in late from time to time. He loved his job, the people he worked with, and took good care of his family. He took pride in the Ambrose/Chambers partnership, since it was his idea with their personalities, and together the two were the best partnership in the precinct, hands down. He hated what he was about to do to them, but it had to be done.

"What's up?" Ambrose asked as he and Chambers took their seats in front of his desk. Neither detective liked the look on his face.

"Are we getting fired?" Chambers asked and Van Dam looked offended that she would even ask such a thing.

"Hell no! You two are the best partnership in the precinct, the golden geese of Homicide."

"Alright, then, why are we here?" Ambrose asked, placing a hand on Chamber's knee in an attempt to relax her.

"I'm pulling you two from the case."

"What!?" They both asked in unison as they rose from their chairs and Van Dam looked at them, simply pointing down and Chambers instantly sat back down, but Ambrose wasn't as compliant.

"Why?" He probed, leaning forward and pressing his palms on the desk.

"As you're both aware, one of the victims had a child. Social Services wants the child to be taken care of, and you two are our best bet."

"We're being taken off of the most gruesome case of the year, to babysit?" Chambers asked in disbelief.

"There's more to it. This is looking like a nation wide drug and murder thing. Meaning that the Feds will want in once we get leads. All of the victims looked a lot like you, detective, and we want you as far away from this case as possible."

"Why are you punishing Dean, then?"

"This isn't a punishment, this is more of a protection for you."

"I'm a fucking cop, I can protect myself."

"Calm down, Ronnie. I think this is a good thing." Ambrose assured, sitting back down and patting her shoulder.

"You two will need to be together twenty four seven and care for this kid as if she was your own."

"How old is the kid?" Ambrose asked.

"Four. She saw the whole ring go down and is our only witness. But she's not saying anything. The landlord says that she's a talkative little thing, for being so young. We need you to get her to talk to you about what she saw. Play house, keep her safe, and make her happy."

"You got it." Ambrose called, pulling Ronnie by her wrist out of the Lieutenant's office as Van Dam called for Rollins and Reigns.

"I'll head to social services and pick up the kid, can you close up things here and-"

"I'll handle it. We staying at my place or yours?" Dean assured.

"I think my place is a bit more child friendly, and I have that spare room."

"True. I'll stop by my place and pack a bag, and we can meet at your place?" He asked as they headed to the parking lot together. She nodded and pushed her hair back and out of her face. "See ya, Ronnie." They fist bumped and she got into her car as he got into his and they drove off.

She walked off of the elevator at Social Services and talked to the receptionist.

"Detective Veronica Chambers." She showed her badge and ID. "I'm here for-"

"Carlee Collins. I know. Straight down the hall, third door on the left."

"Thank you."

Veronica found herself enjoying the way her combat boots sounded against the black and white tiled floor as she took her time walking down the hall. When she reached the door, she frowned, seeing that the case worker was one of her exes.

_Dr. Brandon Carter._

"Huh. This'll be an interesting exchange." She murmured to herself, placing three knocks on the door.

"Come in." She opened the door and stepped inside greeting Brandon with a nod. "Veronica."

"Detective Chambers, to you, Dr. Carter" She stated coldly, but smiled down at the little girl sitting on his desk. "You must be Carlee." She nodded and Veronica held out her hand. "I'm Veronica, you'll be living with me and my friend Dean for a while."

"You're still hanging out with that unstable jack- not very approachable man?" Brandon quickly corrected himself.

"He's approachable, he just didn't like the way you treated me. He's my best friend. One would think that you'd be professional about this." Veronica stated as she lifted the girl off of the desk and set her on her feet. "Are we done here?" Brandon nodded and Carlee took Veronica's hand and walked out alongside the detective.

They walked into her apartment and she wasn't surprised to see that Dean had let himself in.

"What took so long?" He asked and she held up the bags.

"Had to go get clothes, sheets, and a booster seat. She can't stay in the same stuff." Veronica explained as Carlee hid behind her. "Carlee, this is my friend Dean that I told you about."

Dean squatted to be at her eye level and smiled as Carlee poked her head out from behind Veronica.

"I'm not going to hurt you, Carlee. I'm a policeman like Veronica." Carlee ran into his arms and he looked up at Veronica confused as he wrapped his arms around the small girl. Veronica only shrugged and took the bags into the spare room and put the Disney Princess sheets onto the bed. "Ronnie, she's crying. What do I do?"

"Comfort her!" She called, neatly folding all of the clothes away in the dresser before rejoining the two. Carlee was still tucked away in Dean's arms and Dean was rocking her back and forth, but as soon as Carlee's eyes locked onto Veronica walking by, she squirmed away from Dean and attached herself to Veronica's legs. Veronica gave a sad smile and lifted the girl up on her hip.

"What do we do, now?" Dean asked and she shrugged.

"Do we go back to work?" Ronnie asked.

"I think we should." Dean mumbled and she nodded.

"Then that's what we'll do."

"We can take your car." Dean suggested and she nodded as they walked out. He locked the door behind them and she handed him her car keys before she put Carlee in her car seat. "I'll pay you back half of what you spent."

"Don't worry about it, you can just cover dinner." He nodded and they drove in a comfortable silence.

When the trio walked into the office Seth and Roman looked up at them, then exchanged a look with each other.

"The kid looks-" Seth started and Roman nodded.

"Exactly like a tiny Veronica? Well, according to the case files, Ambrose, and Van Dam, the kid's mom looked exactly like Ronnie, too." Roman finished, spelling the whole thing out for Seth, who was too busy finishing up his paperwork from their last case to even start looking at they case they picked up from Ambrose and Chambers. "I've gotta go talk to Ronnie."

"Why?" Seth mumbled, returning his focus to his paperwork, rather than the large Samoan seated across from him.

"Because she's been acting weird, and Ambrose wants me to check on her."

"Why can't he? He's her partner."

"Yeah, but Ambrose is like, emotionally retarded or some shit. He doesn't do feelings or conversations about feelings. Ronnie knows that, and wouldn't even consider talking to him about her feelings." Roman explained with a shrug of his shoulders before he stood. "Get that shit done, man."

"I'm workin' on it, fucker." Seth muttered with a smirk, making Roman chuckle as he approached the desk.

"Chambers." He spoke softly and she looked up at him from her phone. He saw that she was playing Doodle Jump while Dean looked through a gun magazine with the kid on his lap. "Let's go grab coffee." He suggested and she looked over to Ambrose, who gave a curt nod before she stood slowly.

"Alrighty." She murmured softly before walking out the door beside him. "What's up, Reigns?" She asked as they headed down the stairs and he looked down at her, opening the door to the stairwell once they hit the ground floor.

"Your attitude is off." He stated simply and she looked up at him as they walked out the front door and into the crisp November air. "And don't give me that 'I didn't sleep well last night' bullshit, because I know that you were perfectly fine when I walked into the office this morning."

"The victim looks exactly like me. Down to the fucking birthmark on my neck, Reigns. Exact same size and shape." She muttered as they walked down the street and he nodded.

"So what's going through that mid of yours, then?"

"I don't understand." She mumbled so quietly, he almost didn't hear her.

"What are you thinking about, feeling, or anything, really?" He elaborated, and she looked up at him as they stopped at a crosswalk.

"That's just it, Reigns. I just don't understand how it's possible. I'm confused as hell and just all around scared." She pushed her hair back an out of her face and he saw the fear in her olive green eyes.

"You don't have any reason to be afraid. Anything you can't handle, which isn't much from what I've seen with how long I've known your stubborn ass, will be taken care of by Ambrose, Rollins, and myself. We've got your back, so don't be afraid of anything, okay?" He tried to assure her as they crossed the street and she nodded, opening the door to the coffee shop for him. "That's my job as the man, you fucker." He teased and she smiled, shrugging as they stepped in the line to order their drinks.

"If you could not tell Ambrose about me being scared, I'd appreciate it."

"That's like the most important part of our whole conversation on the way here, and you don't want me to convey that to him?"

"It's easier if you don't. He'll start looking at me weird and I don't need that." She reasoned as they left the coffee shop and he shook his head.

"He looks at everybody weird, Ronnie." He countered as they crossed the street and she rolled her eyes.

"He does not." She argued and, forcing a sigh out of Roman.

"I won't tell him, then. But I'm telling him everything else."

"Fine, then."

* * *

**I'm late, I know. Family stuff and such. Hopefully this über long chapter makes up for it. Leave reviews, and tell me what you guys think. **


	3. Chapter 3

The pair tucked Carlee into bed together before sitting on the couch. Veronica did what she usually did and laid her head in his lap while they watched TV together for a couple hours until she yawned.

"Somebody's tired."

"This somebody came face to face with Brandon, of course I'm tired." She mumbled as she sat up, pushing her hair back.

"Does he still think I'm unstable?" Dean asked with a laugh and she grinned as she nodded.

"Yes. But I set him straight in saying that you're a nice guy, but you just didn't like him."

"Understatement, but whatever. We should get to bed."

"We? Who said that I was letting you sleep in my bed?" She asked as she got up from the couch and stretched.

"Uhm, I did. Don't be a bitch."

"Somebody should say please." She teased as she stood.

"Okay. Please don't be a bitch." She giggled and went into her bedroom, Dean close behind. The two have shared a bed before, so it wasn't a big deal to either of them when he stripped down to his boxers and she stripped down to her underwear and removed her bra before slipping into a long sleeved shirt and climbing into bed beside him.

They always started laying back to back, but he was, surprisingly, a cuddler and wrapped his arm around her waist throughout the night. She had no problems with the cuddling, waking up in his arms, then acting like it was nothing. That was the natural order, because that's how things stayed working fluidly.

"Hey, Ronnie?" He asked, turning and facing her back.

"Yes, Dean?" She murmured tiredly, turning to face him

"Van Dam said that we had to play house, what all is entailed with that?" She hummed and shrugged.

"I dunno. I guess we have to show that we're a solid rock for her, individually and as a team, and I guess be loving parents?"

"I can live with that. I'll ask him in the morning for his definition."

"Good plan."

"One more thing."

"Huh?"

"You trust me, right?"

"Of course. We wouldn't be in this position if I didn't."

"You trust that I'll protect you, right?"

"Yes, Dean. I trust you with my life." She mumbled as he rolled onto his back and pulled her to rest her head on his chest. She was too tired to question it, and being perfectly honest, she secretly loved that he initiated the position that could be taken as romantic or intimate. She laid her arm across his stomach, loving that he didn't have a prominent six-pack, but his stomach was flat.

"G'night, Ronnie." He murmured, to which she gave an incoherent response, and he smiled to himself. He could do this every night, if she wanted him to.

* * *

She woke up before he did and smiled to herself. Dean was so adorable while he slept. He looked so innocent with his eyes closed and that smirk being replaced by his mouth being wide open. But, she had to get started on her day, so she rolled out of his arm and walked into the bathroom, taking a shower, and then getting dressed in jeans and a grey vneck long sleeved shirt. When she headed out to the kitchen, she saw Carlee was already up and watching cartoons on TV.

"Good morning Carlee." She greeted with a smile and the girl looked up at her and gave a smile. "What do you want for breakfast?" Veronica was hoping for an answer, but instead the four year old hopped up and walked passed Veronica, opening the fridge and pointing at the egg carton.

"Eggs, huh?" Carlee nodded and Veronica smiled. "How about we have eggs, with bacon and toast?" Carlee shook her head rapidly and Veronica smiled. "Calm down, girly. Wanna help?" She nodded and Veronica grinned as she pulled out all the necessary items from the fridge and set them on the counter before she picked up Carlee and set her on another counter. The four year old watched as Veronica cracked all the eggs into a bowl and then laid out the bacon on a baking sheet while the oven preheated. Veronica then dug out a whisk and handed it to Carlee, before setting the egg bowl beside her.

"Stir it." Veronica encouraged and Carlee tested the waters, slowly turning the whisk. "A little bit faster, you want to break the yellow things, okay?" Carlee nodded with a smile and Veronica pat her head before putting the bacon in the oven. After Carlee had her fill of whisking, Veronica sent her to go get dressed while she cooked the eggs.

Dean had crept up behind Veronica while she stirred the eggs and she jumped, but was quick to relax in his arms.

"You didn't wake me up."

"I figured that my alarm would do the trick." She countered. "Besides, you looked tired last night and I woke up forty five minutes ago, so I let you sleep while I cooked breakfast."

"Thank you. I saw that Carlee was up and moving." He said softly as he removed himself from her and leaned against the counter.

"Yeah, she was up before I was and helped me with the eggs. Can you put toast in the toaster?"

"Yes, ma'am. Did you sleep well?"

"I was quite comfortable. Thank you."

"Not a problem. I'm more comfortable than your kick ass pillows."

"I wouldn't go /that/ far, but you are a close second." She joked and he smirked.

"I can live with that."

"How many strips of bacon do you want?"

"You made bacon?" He asked with a raised eyebrow and she nodded. "I love you."

"I love you, too. How many strips of bacon do you want?"

"Start me off with two. Good morning Carlee." Dean greeted as the girl attached herself to his legs. He picked up and held her on his hip and she put her head on his shoulder. "Did you put on coffee?"

"I figured that we could stop and get some, I'm out of grounds."

"Sounds good. Go sit down, Carlee." He instructed, setting the girl down.

"Is that okay?"

"That's fine, Ronnie. You know I don't care." She nodded as she continued fixing plates. "What's up with you?"

"What do you mean?"

"You're not as feisty, and you've been acting like something spooked you."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Are you kidding? Whenever I stay the night I /always/ wrap my arms around you in the morning and you've /never/ tensed up like that."

"I haven't been feeling like myself, I'll admit that much. She looked just like me, and it made me uneasy."

"You can't let that bother you. You're safe, always have been, and now that I'll be with you close to twenty four-seven, you'll be even safer. Relax, okay?"

"Okay. Thank you."

"No problem. Let's eat!"

"Such a man." She muttered under her breath and he laughed, taking two plates and leading her to the table.

He couldn't deny that eating at the table with Veronica and the kid that looked like a perfect cross between them felt right. He never really thought about settling down, but if Veronica asked him to, he'd do it in a heartbeat. She was a bossy, bitchy, little shit at times, but hands down the most beautiful woman he had ever met. Not to mention the way she quickly broke down his walls, they knew each other inside and out, from their not so great childhoods, to their own individual addictions before they became the hard working detectives that they were today. He could read her like an open book, and knew full well that she could do the same. Nobody would compare to her, nobody could even come close to the beauty, brains, and personality that was Veronica Chambers.

"What are you thinking about?" Veronica asked and he shook his head.

"Nothing important. Don't worry, Ronnie." He assured with a smile, and she tilted her head.

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. Don't you worry about me, sweetheart." She nodded slowly and went back to her breakfast.


	4. Chapter 4

They walked into the office and Veronica plopped into her chair. Dean set Carlee on top of her desk.

"We found a little desk for the little lady!" Seth cheered as he and Roman carried in the smaller desk and Veronica rose an eyebrow.

"I'm gonna go talk to Van Dam."

"About?"

"Last night."

"Oh, yeah. Do that." He chuckled and gave Carlee a gentle pat on her head before he walked away and the two other men looked at Veronica.

"What happened last night?" Seth asked and Roman nodded as he picked up Carlee and set her down in the little chair. "Did you two do it?"

"No, but he did initiate the cuddling last night _while_ I was awake." Seth 'awh'ed and Roman smiled. "Yeah, I'm pretty psyched about that, too."

"Ronnie!" Dean called and the three looked up at him as he waved her into Van Dam's office.

"Oh dear. Can you two watch her?"

"You got it."

"Thanks." She called as she made her way to the office. The look on Dean's face worried her, because he looked worried. Van Dam also looked like he was in a bad spot. "What's wrong?" She asked, placing her hand on his arm and he sighed as he led her inside and shut the door behind them.

"What do you think it is?" Seth asked and Roman shrugged.

"I dunno, but she's scared, man. This whole case is just..." He trailed off, trying to place the word.

"Weird?" Seth asked and the older of the two nodded.

"She's freaked, and you can tell that she's nervous. This is only day two of the freaky fest, and I just get the feeling that this whole thing is only going to get a lot weirder."

"Did you see the look on Dean's face when he called her in?" Seth asked and Roman nodded.

"He looked off. He always has himself in check. That's how we know this is getting bad."

"They both need to get laid." Seth mused and the Samoan raised an eyebrow.

"What does that have to do with anything we were just talking about?"

"It was an attempt at lightening the mood, and it's truth."

"Maybe you should suggest that to him. But right now, we've got to check for dental records."

* * *

This couldn't be happening. Her dental records matched the victim's _perfectly_. That was physically impossible. And to top it all off, her dental records matched a victim from a couple years ago who looked _just_ like her. So she and Dean were given the day off for her to relax and for him to make sure she didn't do anything stupid.

"Dean, I don't know what to do." She murmured as they sat down with Carlee in the mall food court. "I feel like I'm in an episode of the fucking Twilight Zone and-"

"You just need to relax. I'm here, I'm not letting anything happen to you, and I don't think this happened on the Twilight Zone." He attempted to joke but she only stared at him. "I know, I'm not funny."

"I feel like I'm being watched, Dean."

"Do you wanna head to your place?"

"I'd appreciate it."

"Let's go, girlie."

* * *

She managed to keep her cool the whole drive back to her apartment. Dean knew that she wasn't alright, though. He knew her too well. He knew that when she couldn't stop tapping her feet and drumming on her thighs, she was nervous.

"You're going to bruise yourself." He scolded playfully, gripping one of her small wrists in his large hand.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize for being nervous. It happens. I'm nervous too." He admitted quietly, but loud enough that it grabbed her attention.

"You are?"

"Mhm. This whole thing keeps getting weirder, but I'm here for you, okay?" He assured, and she nodded, offering her most convincing smile.

"Okay."

* * *

**It's been so long, I know. And I'm sorry for the wait. Family stuff has been distracting me. Hopefully this chapter isn't too terrible. **


	5. Chapter 5

Things for the partnership went as close to normal as normal could get for the next few weeks. Carlee still wasn't talking, despite speech therapy, regular therapy, and constant support from Dean and Veronica. They would spend hours trying to coax some kind of verbal response from the little girl. Dean and Veronica continued to share her bed, sometimes he held her outright, others she'd wake up pressed to his chest. It didn't really matter, because she felt safe with him.

They continued working cases that weren't the one case that she actually wanted to work on, but Dean kept her occupied with their cases. They were still on top of the homicide food chain, since Seth and Roman were tied to the Collins case and missed out on the easy solves.

"Remember when they waited a couple years after buying life insurance before killing their husbands?" She asked with a smirk, leaning back in her chair as she fiddled with her pen.

"I know. Waiting a week tops to off the poor bastard takes all the challenge out of the case." Dean joked from where he sat across from her, filling out his portion of their paperwork on their last case. "What are we having for dinner tonight, Ronnie?"

"Fuck, I dunno. I wasn't really thinking about dinner."

"Can we have the macaroni and cheese with the little hot dogs?" He asked and she shrugged.

"Sure. That sound good to you, Carlee?" They both looked down the see the girl nod before going back to what they were doing.

* * *

While making dinner, Veronica would periodically glance over at the table where Dean was drinking a beer and helping Carlee with basic reading and writing. It was adorable, really. The small smile on his face while he intently watched what Carlee was doing, until there was a knock on the door and they all jumped, startled at the force of the rapid knocks.

"I'll get it." Veronica volunteered, setting her big spoon on the stove. "Watch the macaroni for me?" She asked and Dean nodded as he stood, but hovered behind Veronica as she answered the door, revealing a much more professional looking Veronica.

"So it's true." The mystery woman murmured quietly and both detectives rose an eyebrow, exchanging a glance with each other. "Veronica, I need to speak with you in private. Step outside with me for a tid?" She asked and Veronica looked back at Dean, who gave a curt nod. The way he blinked told her that he'd be right by the door listening, and she nodded before stepping outside and shutting the door behind her.

"Keep working kid, I'll be over there in a second." He instructed as he lightly stepped towards the door.

"...and we need your help."

"My help? I don't even-"

"Arielle Simmons. I'm a lawyer from London. We've got to stick together."

"Stick together? I don't trust easy, sister." Veronica stated and he heard "Arielle" huff.

"We expected this of you. I told them this wouldn't be simple."

"Them?"

"The rest of the clone club. That's what we call ourselves. But the first rule of clone club is not to talk about clone club." Clone club? This was all getting a bit too out of hand. "Tomorrow night. Six o'clock. Use the side door and come alone."

"I don't go anywhere alone these days."

"Make it happen. Enjoy your evening." Veronica stepped back inside, holding a piece of paper and Dean looked at her.

"Clone club?" He asked and she pushed her hair out of her face. "You're not going alone."

"I know I'm not. I'll go finish dinner and we can further discuss this after we put her to bed." He only nodded and went back to his seat.

"Nice letters, kid." He praised, high-fiving Carlee while Veronica continued to make dinner.

* * *

"So, I'm just going drop you off and drive around the block until you're done?" Dean asked and she nodded as he parked in front of the address Arielle had given to Veronica the night before. It was a nice two story house in the middle of a quiet neighborhood. Nothing was suspicious about it at all.

"Or you can take Carlee to that park over there. I don't need you right on me, but I want you close." She clarified and he nodded.

"I can do that. You know that you still have your piece on?" He asked, pointing to her gun on her hip and she nodded as she stepped out of the car and put on her peacoat.

"I'm taking a precaution. I'll be in touch."

"You better be." He called before driving down the street as Veronica made her way across the street and to the side door. She knocked three times before the door was opened by a familiar face, only because it was her face. The only difference was the platinum blonde hair and six different facial piercings that Veronica could see.

"You're the cop?"

"Who the fuck else would she be?" Arielle chimed in and Veronica looked around the blonde to see the lawyer standing with another "clone", only this one was a redhead. "Let her in."

"Veronica Chambers." She introduced herself as she entered the garage and shed her coat.

"You didn't say she'd be packing, Arielle. I like her already." The blonde stated, moving to flop into one of he beanbag chairs. Veronica tossed her coat onto a chair but stayed standing, crossing her arms over her chest.

"This is 'clone club'? Not as crowded as I pictured." Veronica stated, looking at the three others, Arielle in particular.

"This is Chloe and Leanna." Arielle pointed to the blonde and redhead respectively and Veronica nodded, scrunching her nose when she started to smell pot.

"Seriously, Leanna? She's a fucking cop!" Chloe shouted as Leanna started to roll a joint, but the redhead only shrugged.

"It's my fucking house! I have two fucking kids, momma needs to unwind somehow." Veronica only shrugged, showing no effect.

"I'm off-duty. Would somebody please explain to me why you need my help?"

"You have access to records I don't as an English lawyer. You're an American homicide detective, one of the best. You have access to things I don't, and we need information."

"What kind of information?" Veronica asked as she started to move around the room, taking in the little details. Leanna looked to be about two weeks behind on her laundry.

"The Collins case. And before that one, the White case. They were both clones." Chloe stated and Veronica nodded.

"Yeah, I know. Their dental records matched mine and got my partner and I taken off the Collins case."

"What do you know?" Leanna asked and Veronica shook her head.

"I'm not authorized to release that information."

"I need to know one thing." Chloe stated and Veronica looked down at her. "Did Collins have a kid?"

"Yeah. She's in mine and my partner's custody."

"I need to analyze her DNA. Leanna's kids are adopted and don't have the same genetic code."

"Getting Carlee involved means that you're getting my partner involved."

"Can he be trusted?"

"Chloe!" Arielle shouted, grabbing everyone's attention. "What happened to no non-clones?"

"We need the kid!"

"Can't we do without it?"

"Not for long." Chloe stated, staring directly at Arielle.

"I'm assuming she's the computer genius?" Veronica asked and the three nodded. "Gotcha."


	6. Chapter 6

"So there's a super genius, a pot head, and an uptight lawyer. That's the clone club?" Dean asked as they got ready for bed that night and Veronica nodded. "Ronnie, this is-"

"Weird, I know. I don't like it. Do you think I could get access to the White case from six months back?" She asked, getting comfortable in the bed and he shrugged, wrapping his arm around her waist and pulling her back to his chest.

"Possibly. It's a cold case so you might get away with saying that you might have a lead and wanted to look over the other aspects of the case to see if it was actually a lead or just old news. Ronnie, tell me you're not thinking about giving them that file? What if they're doing the killing and you'd be unknowingly helping them destroy evidence?"

"I never said that I was giving them the case files. I wanna know about the case for me, not them." Veronica explained, turning over so that she faced him. "I don't trust them. Just because they look just like me with different variations doesn't mean that they're just like me. Obviously, since one's a pothead."

"I just don't like that they know where we live." He mumbled and she smirked.

"We?" She repeated, and he rolled his eyes.

"Yes, we live here together. I haven't been to my apartment in close to two months except to get more clothes and throw out the old food."

"That sounds so committal coming from you." She teased, but instead of getting a snarky response, he turned over so that his back was to her. "Seriously?"

"Go to bed." He grumbled and she rolled her eyes, turning her back to him and getting comfortable.

_If that's how he wants to be, so be it._ She thought to herself, staring at the wall until finally sleep took over.

* * *

_Seven babies sat in seven individual, yet identical, cribs. Each baby had a number, not yet a name._

_"Four has shown incredible progress in all categories, but Five does not like Four in the slightest." A man in a lab coat and extremely tacky tie that didn't match his shirt in the slightest mentioned to a man in a suit and tie that looked awfully like Veronica's father. He nodded and shrugged._

_"They're girls, girls always fight, that's why I've been adopting boys." The two men laughed as they approached Four and the man with the tacky tie lifted her from the playpen._

_"You'll do great things, Four."_

_"She will." The suited man murmured, stroking Four's head before walking out._

* * *

Veronica woke with a gasp, sitting up slowly and turning to face Dean, who was also sitting up.

"What's wrong?" He mumbled tiredly, rubbing his eye with his palm.

"I just had the weirdest dream ever."

"Wanna talk about it?" She shrugged, not exactly sure if he was still being a bitch or not.

"He had such a tacky tie." She mumbled and Dean shook his head.

"Your dream was disturbing because a guy had a tacky tie?"

"Shut up. I was trying to segue. But there was this room, and I'm assuming that I was Four."

"Four?"

"Out of seven. There were seven cribs in the room and each one looked identical. The cribs AND the babies. They were all numbered, not named, and this guy in a lab coat and absurdly tacky tie that didn't even match the shirt he was wearing walked in with this guy in a suit. The suited guy looked just like my dad and they were talking about how Four, who I'm assuming was me, was making progress but Five didn't like four and the suited guy made some lame joke about girls being programmed to fight each other and why he only adopted boys."

"Why do you think that you're Four?" Dean asked and Veronica sighed.

"Because when tacky tie picked up Four and talked to her, it was like I was looking right at him. His eyes were so blue, it almost made up for his super tacky tie." She mumbled, looking up into Dean's eyes. Almost the exact shade of blue as tacky tie.

"What did they say?"

"Just that they knew Four would do great things."

"Say that you are Four, they'd be right."

"Huh?"

"I mean sure, your partner is one of the biggest fuck ups in history, but you've made a name for yourself."

"You're not a fuck up, Dean. Not everyone can get out of the slums. You did, I mean, I'd say that makes up for all the shit you've done."

"Ronnie, you and this job are the best things I've got going in my life." He murmured, looking into her olive green eyes. The way she looked up at him, bright eyes shining in the moonlight, took his breath away. He knew that she saw passed the tough guy front, through the walls and barriers he'd put up to protect himself. She knew close to everything about him, and still stuck around. Why, he didn't have a fucking clue. She must've been just as nuts as he was.

"Dean?" She whispered as his fingers traced down her jawline and he tilted her chin up a bit. But just before their lips touched, he pulled away and laid down.

"G'night sweets." Why was he being so weird? She didn't like it in the slightest, but she knew that asking him about it would only push him further away. So she laid back down and was quick to fall asleep.


	7. Chapter 7

Simple. It was a simple curiosity that needed to be satisfied because she had nothing better to do. Who said that it was illegal to sneak into a room that you have a key to, unbeknownst to the rest of the department? But still, she found the click of her boots against the concrete floors that were the basement of the police department a bit unnerving. Dean had made a comment about hearing her boots from a mile away. Sure he was kidding at the time, but what if somebody heard her?

"So you're getting it?" She heard right in her ear and jumped, yelping slightly. "Calm down, Ronnie, it's just me." She turned to face Dean and sighed.

"You scared me. And no, I'm not getting it. I'm looking at it solely to ease my curiosity. Why do you care?"

"Because, like it or not, I'm involved in this now."

"Yeah, the way you've decided to distance yourself last night and this morning screams 'involvement'." She muttered, continuing to walk down the isle in search of her file. He sighed, but followed close behind.

"Ronnie, now isn't the time or the place." He stated, but she only glared up at him.

"Maybe you should start staying at your apartment." She suggested and his eyes widened.

"What?" He seemed a bit stunned by her statement, and how cold her tone was.

"I'm not going to deal with you being wishy washy, Dean. I'll admit, I feel safer with you in my bed, but I'm too tired to try decoding through your bullshit on top of my own problems."

"I'm not a 'heart on your sleeve', lovey dovey, type of guy Ronnie. You know this."

"But you're not fucking bipolar either. You can't be all gentle touches one second and cold shoulder me the next. I can't handle it, because I'm not the 'deal with the bullshit because I care about you' type of woman, Dean. You should know this." She countered, hands on her hips. She noticed him take slow steps towards her, and slowly backed up until her back hit the wall. His hands planted firmly against the wall beside her hips, so she had nowhere to go.

"So you want me to pick one?" He asked lowly, keeping his baby blues locked on her olive green eyes.

"More or less."

"I can do that." He whispered, lowering his head to press his lips to hers. At first she wasn't receptive of the kiss at all. But after a couple seconds she warmed up to the idea and wrapped her arms around his neck. She liked the way his hands gripped her hips. She knew that he thrived on controlling the situation, and she didn't mind letting him control this. "That box you're looking for is up there." He told her as he pulled away and she nodded, but neither moved from their position.

"Is it sad that I don't want to move?" She asked with a slight laughed and he shook his head.

"Nah, most ladies are star struck by my good looks up close. Don't worry." He teased, breaking their positioning so he could grab the box. But he wasn't tall enough.

"Should I get the stool?" She asked and he shook his head as he knelt down.

"Just sit on my shoulders. It'll be just like playing chicken."

"If you drop me, I swear to god, Dean-" she started to warn as she did as he said, holding onto his head as he stood slowly.

"I'm not going to drop you. I promise." He assured as she grabbed the box and he slowly knelt down. "Let's take a peek. This chick was way uglier than you." He informed as he opened the file that rest on top of everything else.

"That's so rude." She scolded, snatching the file, but grimaced upon seeing the picture of the victim. "Drugs are bad. Drugs are so bad."

"That's so rude." Dean mocked and she flipped him off as she skimmed through the file. "Anything interesting?"

"It was execution style."

"Of course it was. How does it tie into Collins? Hers was blunt force trauma to the head, not execution style."

"Looks like the only tie in is their DNA. Let's put this back before somebody comes down here and finds us."

"I got it." Dean stated as he stood, taking the box from her and pushing it onto the shelf where it was before the got there. "Let's go." He gently grabbed her hand and pulled her through the various isles, but stopped dead in his tracks when they heard footsteps coming down the stairs. Getting caught wasn't on his agenda for the day, so he picked her up and carried her to the small window on the far wall.

"It's snowing outside." She objected in a harsh whisper, but he only pushed her through the window, letting her pull herself out before he handed her his leather jacket to put on and started to pull himself out the window. She grabbed his hands and pulled to the best of her ability, but it was barely enough to be of assistance, and she ended up on her ass once he was out.

"Thanks for that." He mumbled as he stood and helped her to her feet.

"Let's not mention it." She suggested as they walked around the building to the front doors of the precinct. "My ass is wet."

"I thought we weren't mentioning it?" He teased, earning a punch in the arm from his partner.

"Fuck you. I didn't have to help, you know."


	8. Chapter 8

Carlee looked between the two detectives on the drive home. They were both quiet, which was weird. They always talked about how the day went, argued over the radio, or talked about dinner. The day was a usual day, the radio wasn't on, and Dean had already stopped at McDonald's for dinner. She noticed that Dean kept looking over at Veronica as he drove, but only when she wasn't looking at him. Veronica would do the same, but neither noticed the other's glances. Something had happened between them, she just hoped that it didn't mean she was leaving them.

* * *

"Do you still want me to go?" Dean asked quietly from where he sat on the couch, a fast asleep Carlee in his arms. Veronica sighed from her seat on the couch beside him and shook her head.

"But you've got to promise me that you'll stop being so wishy washy."

"That kiss in the cold case storage was my promise, Ronnie. I don't just kiss anybody like that. And I certainly don't just give my jacket to people during a Houdini act." He reasoned and she nodded.

"If you say so. I'm going to head to bed, though." She stated as she stood and he looked up at her as she started to walk away.

"It's eight o'clock?" He stated in more of a questioning tone, and she sighed.

"I'm tired, Dean." She stated simply and he nodded.

"Let me put her in bed, and then I'll tuck you in." He said as he stood, lifting the still sleeping Carlee and Veronica nodded as she continued to her bedroom. It wasn't long until he was in bed beside her and she was fast asleep in his arms. Looking down at the woman in his arms, he felt like everything in his life was coming together for once. He felt more at peace coming home with the same woman to the same apartment, than he did when he had a flavor of the weekend that he met at a bar and charmed into his bed.

"Stop staring at me." She mumbled and he chuckled before laying down and holding her close.

"G'night, sweets."

"Night, dork."

* * *

She got up before he did, like always, and got started on breakfast. Carlee was up soon after and hugged Veronica in her own way of greeting, then went to the table to color in one of her various coloring books.

"My Little Pony today, huh?" She asked and Carlee nodded. "Cool, kiddo. Did you see if Dean was awake, yet?"

"I'm up. Breakfast smells good, babe." He praised, kissing Veronica's head and she smiled, but her brain had just registered the pet name. He called her _babe_. That's a term of endearment that he'd never called her before. She had gotten used to variations of sweetheart and dollface, but never had he ever called her _babe_. Did that mean that- no. It didn't mean anything. Dean Ambrose was a flirt, always has been, and always will be. There was no way that her feelings for him were reciprocated. She wasn't anything special. Just Detective Veronica Chambers. They weren't a thing, that kiss probably meant nothing to him.

"So what are we doing today?" Veronica asked, looking over at Dean, who only shrugged.

"Let's go walk around the mall. After Christmas sales are the best sales."

"Sounds good."

* * *

The trio had a fun time walking around the mall together. Dean bought hot chocolate for his girls, although he'd never call them that out loud until he knew if what he had with Veronica was a relationship or if that kiss was just one of those heat of the moment things. Veronica had coaxed him into buying them matching sweaters, but in return he got her to buy him a comically sized bottle of whiskey. They had just come back from their second trip to the car and decided on getting lunch in the food court and were settled down at a table in the center of the food court, eating their own separate meals when someone had caught Veronica's eye, and Dean noticed her attention not being on him rambling about his food and on somebody behind him.

"Ronnie, what's wrong?" Carlee pointed at who Veronica was staring at and Dean turned just in time to see the gun. "Get down!" He tugged her and Carlee down to the floor as the shot rang out and the chaos began.

"That's the man who hurt mommy." Carlee mumbled, and both detectives nodded, not paying any mind to the fact that Carlee had spoken to them for the first time ever.

"What do we do?" Veronica asked and Dean saw the panic in her eyes.

"For starters, we get the hell out of here." He instructed as he picked up Carlee, grabbed Veronica's hand in his, and the trio thrust themselves into the crowd. Veronica lost Dean quickly, then lost her footing due to all the pushing and shoving around her. So she did the smartest thing possible and crawled into the furniture store and hid under a bed. She pulled out her phone and sent a text to Dean.

_'Still in mall. I'll be ok just stay with Carlee.'_


	9. Chapter 9

As soon as Dean read the text he felt his heart sink. She was still in there, and so was the madman. He sat down on the curb, holding Carlee close to his chest.

"Yo, Ambrose!" He looked up to Seth, not in the mood for games. "Dude, what's wrong? Where's Ronnie?"

"Ronnie is still in there. I need to go get her."

"You can't leave Carlee, and I'm sure Ronnie told you that. She can handle herself, Dean." Roman reasoned, sitting beside Dean on the curb.

"I'm not leaving this spot until she's with me. Whoever is in there with her was the guy that did the triple homicide."

"How do you know?"

"Carlee told us."

"Good to know." Dean nodded, tightening his grip on Carlee.

* * *

Meanwhile, Veronica was in a rough spot. Still beneath the bed, she heard the lights go off, and the madman call out to her.

"Come on, Detective Chambers. Show me that you're better than your clones. I know you want to. I know that you're learning the truth." He stopped in front of the bed and she held her breath, not trying to give him any ideas as to where she could be. He walked off and she waited until he was fifty feet away before she rolled out from under the bed rolled behind a row of nightstands. "Come out, come out, wherever you are!" He sang and she shuddered, but continued to duck and dodge her way to the door. "Gotcha!" She heard right in her ear, so she threw her head back, turning and kneeing him in the face before fleeing, zig zagging and dodging bullets before running up the immobile escalator and diving into a sporting goods store.

_'I'm in the sporting goods store' _She informed Dean, who breathed a sigh of relief reading her text.

"She's alive," He breathed out. "And in her own wonderland."

"Wonderland?" Carlee questioned and he smiled down at the girl.

"A store that has weapons, and a lot of them, kiddo." The little girl nodded and he continued to stare down at his phone. His wallpaper was a selfie that Veronica, Seth, and Roman took at the office Christmas party last year. He acted all pissy about it when it happened, but he was grateful that they took it. It was a reminder of what kept him alive today. The three greatest friends in the world, and he made sure to tell her that once they had left the party.

Meanwhile, Veronica was strapping herself down with various paintball guns and hunting knifes. She wasn't looking to kill, because she wanted answers. What did he mean by clones? Were there more? Or was she the only one left?

"Veronica! Where are you!?"

"Don't you worry, sweetheart, I'm coming for ya." She muttered under her breath, checking for a text from Dean.

_'SWAT is going in now. Stay where you're at. Please don't be a hero.'_

She sighed and decided to comply, sliding across the counter and unstrapping her weapons, but keeping an eight inch hunting blade tight in her hand. There was no way in _hell_ that she'd completely disarm when that whacko was out for blood.

_'For you.'_

The two words confused him. Was she complying, or did she go kamikaze? Oh how he hoped that she didn't turn this into a suicide mission. Not before he could tell her that he-

"Dean, Barrett's got her!" Seth called and Dean stood up with Carlee still in his arms.

"How do you know?"

"He radioed in. They killed the gunman, though." Dean made his way to Seth and and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Looks like your case is closed, now."

"Good. We'll have to get an official statement from Carlee, though."

"We can do that, right Princess?" Carlee nodded and Seth smiled at Dean. "What the fuck are you smiling at?"

"She looks like a perfect cross between you and Ronnie, man." Dean nodded and shrugged.

"I noticed that."

"You two should totally adopt her! Man, that'd be so great! You being a dad would be the most hilarious thing, like ever."

"Shut the fuck up, Seth." He grumbled, passing Carlee to him once he spotted Barrett with Veronica in his arms.

"What happened?" He questioned and the taller Brit shrugged.

"We were walking out and she collapsed. She had gotten shot before SWAT came in, probably didn't even notice because of the adrenaline." Dean nodded as they put her on a stretcher and Seth brought Carlee over.

"Whats going on?"

"She got shot. Barrett didn't tell me where, what matters is that she's alive. I'm gonna follow the ambulance in my car and-"

"Go in the ambulance and give me the keys. I have to get Carlee's statement, anyway, and then I'll bring her to the hospital."

"Alright. I'll be with you soon, Princess." He kissed Carlee's head and handed Seth his car keys before climbing in the ambulance before it took off.


	10. Chapter 10

When she woke up in the hospital, she was alone, and in a bit of pain. What had happened with the mall? She remembered being found by Barrett of SWAT, but after that it was a blur.

"You're up." She heard Dean mumble and she looked to the doorway as he walked in.

"Dean." She greeted with a small smile as he walked towards her.

"Hey, beautiful. Did you know that you got shot?"

"Dean-"

"Did you know that you were hit?" He cut her off in a darker, more demanding tone.

"Not until Barrett found me. I didn't feel myself get hit and I honestly thought that I was fine until Barrett pointed out that I was hit." He nodded and sat down in the chair beside her bed. "You can sit on the bed, I don't mind."

"You sure?"

"Dean, I don't even know where I was shot, and I can't feel any pain, and I really want one of your hugs right now." He smiled- not a smirk, but an actual smile- and made his way beside her into the bed. He wrapped his arms around her and smirked when he heard her heartbeat speed up on the monitor.

"Somebody wants me."

"Shut up." She blushed, leaning her head on his chest. "Yours does the same."

"I know, sweetheart. I know. I was only teasing."

"Where's Carlee?" She asked and he rubbed her back.

"Giving Seth and Roman her official statement saying that the dick in the mall killed her mother."

"Oh. She'll be with us soon, right?"

"Yeah. But did he say anything to you?" When Veronica hesitated, he knew that she was shaken. "What did he say?"

"He wanted me to prove to him that I was the best clone out of all of them?"

"How many?"

"He didn't say. But I'm certain wherever this asshole came from, they'll send more."

"Let's hope not. But we're not going to worry about this. Instead, we're going to worry about _us_ and Carlee."

"Us and Carlee?"

"I was thinking that maybe we could adopt her. I mean, I've pretty much moved into your place, and she's warmed up to us, so why not?"

"You really want to?"

"Of course. I don't know if you noticed, but she's a perfect mix between us."

"Dean, that's a big commitment, and I know how you get when you feel trapped and-" He pressed a finger to her lips, silencing her.

"Why the hell would I feel trapped if it was my fucking idea? Jesus Christ, I need you to think more." He teased, removing his finger and using it to twirl a lock of her hair around. She lightly slapped his hand away and snuggled more into his chest.

"I'm sorry, I'm tired."

"Get some sleep, then. I'll be here when you wake up."

"Don't leave me."

"Only when I have to piss."

"Thank you." She mumbled as she laid down and he got more comfortable, leaning against the backboard of the bed. He couldn't help but smile at the fact that she decided to rest her head against his thigh, rather than the pillows on the bed. "Do you mind?" She asked softly and he shook his head.

"You're good there. Comfortable?" He asked as he began running his fingers through her hair like he did when they watched TV together.

"Very."

"Good. Sweet dreams, you little shit." She playfully smacked his leg and he laughed. "Don't abuse your pillow, Ronnie."

"Shut up and keep doing what you're doing with my hair." He complied, simply because he loved this. He loved being close to her.


	11. Chapter 11

"Dean, I'm fine." She assured as they entered her apartment. Her leg was in a boot, because she refused to wear a cast, and she was supposed to be on crutches, but Veronica Chambers was a stubborn one.

"You're a stubborn little shit, you know that?" Dean mumbled as he led Carlee inside. "Get ready for bed, squirt."

"Do I have to sleep in the boot?"

"No, but you have to be careful and not move around too much."

"Not a problem." She called as she hobbled down the hall to her bedroom. She managed to get into her pajamas and climbed into bed. It was late and she was exhausted. He noticed how quick she was to get into bed and he decided to sleep on the couch, not wanting to disturb her.

After hours of tossing and turning to the best of her ability, eventually she sat up and saw that Dean wasn't in bed. So she eased herself out of bed, forgetting completely about having to be in the boot, and started to stumble her way to the living room. Once she saw him fast asleep on the couch, a rerun of Will & Grace playing on the television, she smiled and made her way over to the couch to turn off the TV and she lightly shook his shoulder.

"Dean."

"What, Ron?" He mumbled tiredly, sitting up to look at her.

"I can't sleep."

"Did you have another weird dream?"

"Nah, I just couldn't sleep. Can you come sleep in my bed?" She hated how meek she sounded when she asked, but she needed him.

"We're not in bed now?"

"This is the living room."

"How did you get out here?" He asked, now seeming to be much more alert than he was before.

"I walked. Both my legs work."

"Veronica Elizabeth Chambers. You were shot a day and a half ago. You shouldn't be walking." He scolded as he stood, lifting her over his shoulder and carrying her to her bedroom. He gently sat her down and sat beside her, cupping her cheek in his palm. He felt her tense and knew why, she didn't like her cheeks being touched due to being slapped by her parents so many times as a child.

"Relax, Ronnie. I'm not going to hurt you." He murmured, his lips brushing against hers as he spoke before he gently pressed his lips to hers. She let her eyes drift closed as she applied slight pressure to his lips.

"Veronica?" Carlee called into the bedroom and the two detectives separated.

"Uh, yeah, Carlee?" She asked, pretending that she wasn't just kissing her best friend and partner for the second time.

"I had a bad dream. Can I sleep with you guys?"

"Sure thing, squirt." Dean said with a smile and she ran into the room and climbed into the bed, plopping into the small gap between the two detectives.

"Thank you."

"So, you're talking now?" Veronica asked and Carlee nodded, making the older woman smile. "Well, this is exciting."

"Can I stay you you guys forever?" Carlee asked and Veronica looked at Dean as the two laid down.

"Of course. We'll be a family." He assured, pushing Carlee's hair out of her face. "Who's last name is she taking?"

"Yours."

"Mine?"

"I like yours more than I like mine. Good night, Dean."

"Night, Ronnie."

* * *

She woke up alone in bed and sat up, huffing when she saw her boot by the bathroom door on the other side of the room. She grabbed her phone off the nightstand and texted Dean.

_'Is this your way of telling me that I'm not allowed to do anything?'_

Dean read the text and laughed while he flipped pancakes and plated them before texting her back.

_'You're a genius, babe.'_

She didn't bother to reply, not wanting to chance him starting a fire since she assumed that he was cooking breakfast, although she wasn't sure how adept of a cook he was.

"We made you breakfast, Ronnie!" Carlee called as she ran into the bedroom ahead of Dean four minutes later. They were both in their pajamas, but Dean had put a tshirt on. Veronica observed the way his biceps appeared to bulge out of his tshirt and she smiled as Carlee climbed into bed and Dean set the tray on her nightstand before handing her a plate, handing Carlee her plate, and grabbing his and sitting beside Veronica.

"I didn't know you could cook." Veronica said and he shook his head.

"There's a lot of things that you still don't know about me, sweetheart." She rolled her eyes at his playful wink and he chuckled. "Eat your food, babe."

_There he goes again with that "babe" shit. I know I'm probably reading too far into this, but fuck. _Ronnie thought to herself as she began to eat. _But these pancakes are fucking fantastic._

"These are really good." She praised and Dean nodded.

"Thanks."

* * *

"So are we going to pretend that last night didn't happen?" She asked him once he came back from putting Carlee in bed for a nap. He looked at her with a raised brow as he sat down.

"Last night?"

"Forget it." She sighed, looking away from him and to the Bengals game on the TV.

"Nope." He shut the TV off, then tossed the remote to the side when she tried to reach for it.

"That's fucked up. The Bengals were actually winning." She complained and he mentally cursed himself, having wanted to watch that game.

"What's fucked up is that you're going to hide from this, Ronnie."

"I'm not hiding from anything." She defended, not wanting to delve into this topic anymore, even though he started it.

"What are you doing, then!? Looks a whole hell of a lot like you're hiding from me."

"Why would I hide from you?"

"Because you know that I'm in..terested in you." He managed to catch himself when her eyes widened and he realized what he had almost said and he looked away from her.

"What did you say?"

"Nothing. I didn't say anything." He defended quickly, and she smirked.

"Who's hiding now?" She asked with a raised brow and crossed arms while he held his head in his hands.

"That...wasn't supposed to come out like that, Ronnie. I had a plan."

"A...plan? Dean, I-"

"-don't feel the same way, I know. I'm a great guy, but I'm a bit unstable so I get it, just-"

"Shut up." She cut him off and looked up at her. "You're wrong, Dean. I'm also interested in you, as you put it, and in case you haven't noticed I have fucking clones or some shit. We both have our issues, Dean."

"How are we going to raise Carlee in a stable environment if we're both emotionally challenged?"

"I dunno. We'll have to work on that."

"You're mine, now." He stated firmly and she stared at him.

"Excuse me?"

"You're my girl."

"You didn't even ask!" She laughed, playfully hitting him with a couch pillow. He caught it with a grin and pulled it away before stealing her lips in a kiss.

"I can do that whenever I want, now. This will be fun." He mumbled against her lips.

"Mhm. Now go get the remote, I wanna watch the Bengals."

"Be still, my beating heart." He mumbled as he got up and collected the remote and all of its parts, putting it together as he made his way to the couch. He plopped himself beside her on the couch and wrapped his arm around her shoulders and turned the TV back on just as the game went off.

"You fucker." She grumbled as the post game show started.

"At least Bengals won."

"Fuck you."


	12. Chapter 12

They walked into work with Carlee and Roman pulled out Veronica's chair for her.

"You shouldn't be back so soon, Ronnie." He murmured softly and she shrugged as she sat down.

"I can't sit at home when there's work to be done, Rome. I got my two weeks off."

"Stubborn little shit." He chuckled and Dean nodded. "You've rubbed off on her, man."

"Probably why they're such a good team." Seth commented, setting a cup of coffee on her desk like usual. "It's good to have her back, though."

"Thanks for making me feel welcome, Seth."

"Anytime, sweetheart." With that, the other partnership walked to their desks and Veronica looked over at Dean, who looked upset about something.

"What's wrong?" She asked quietly, leaning over a bit and he shrugged.

"He called you sweetheart."

"Like you've been doing for years before we got together. You're not going to get all possessive when it comes to Seth and Roman, are you?"

"You're my girlfriend."

"Don't you think I know that? Seth and Roman are like my brothers. You have nothing to worry about, Dean."

"Alright." He sighed in submission and she smiled as he phone rang.

"Detective Chambers."

_"Where the hell have you been?"_ The British accent gave away that it was Arielle.

"Do you not watch the news? I got shot. What do you want, I'm at work?"

_"Funny, so am I. I need your help."_

"What could you possibly want now?"

_"Chloe won't leave me alone about the kid. We need her DNA."_

"I'll talk it over with my partner." With that, she hung up on the lawyer and Dean looked at her in confusion.

"What-"

"Not now. We'll discuss this later." He knew her tone. There was no chance of her budging on this one.

"Babe, what are we getting for lunch?"

"Whatever Carlee wants is fine with me."

* * *

"Did you ever ask why the pothead adopted rather than have kids of her own?" Dean asked as they sat at the dinner table. Carlee had gone to bed an hour ago and they were discussing whether or not they should get her involved.

"I only assumed that she was infertile or her husband was sterile." She stated as she got up and headed into the kitchen for a beer.

"Are you fertile?"

"Yes, actually. Why?" She was a bit thrown off by his questions. They only got together two weeks ago, now was not the time to consider children.

"You said that there were seven of you, right?" He asked as she handed him a beer and she nodded as she sat back down.

"In that dream there were seven, yes."

"What if only a select few of you were fertile? Like Collins was obviously, but what if only the originals are fertile? Or you all have some sort of genetic talent that the others don't?"

"There would technically have to be an original one for there to be clones, but who would be the original? How would we figure that out?"

"Maybe there's an alteration in the genetic sequence? Do you have your birth certificate?"

"It's in my safe."

"Where were you born?"

"An air force base in Germany. But we know that's not true because he told me that I was actually adopted and my dad had a birth certificate forged for me."

"How did you get that out of the colonel?"

"He was drunk."

"Even colonel hardass gets loose lips?"

"All you need is a bottle of Jack."

"I'll have to remember that. Anyways, we've got to find out where you were adopted from. Chances are, that's where the others came from."

"Okay. What if I was infertile, though?" Now that she had voiced her question, she regretted it. The look on his face changed from confusion, to worry, to certainty quickly and he smiled as he held her hand.

"It wouldn't matter to me, because we have Carlee, and that's pretty fucking close to a child of our own. Your baby making capabilities aren't going to change how I feel about you, Ronnie, so don't worry about that, okay?" She only nodded and he kissed her hand, forcing a smile out of the brunette. "I say we let Chloe get whatever she needs from Carlee, since it may be some kind of help."

"Okay. That means that you get to come to clone club."

"That'll be interesting."


	13. Chapter 13

"Where are we going?" Carlee asked for the fifth time during the drive and Dean sighed. Veronica had been in bed nursing a migraine all day, so he knew that Carlee's non stop questioning was agitating her. Why couldn't they meet somewhere that wasn't two hours away from their apartment?

"Somewhere really important." Veronica mumbled and he looked over at her sympathetically.

"How's your head?" He asked softly and she looked over at him.

"Fine. It's my leg that's bothering me now."

"Are we there yet?" Carlee asked and Dean glanced at her through the rearview mirror.

"No, Princess."

"Why don't you take a nap, honey? Maybe we'll be there by the time you wake up?" Veronica suggested, looking back at the almost five year old and smiled when she nodded.

"Okay."

"Thank you, kiddo." Dean said softly and Veronica smiled at him. "What are you smiling at?"

"You. I like 'daddy' Dean."

"You don't like 'boyfriend' Dean?" He asked with a smirk and she rolled her eyes.

"I like him too. Don't ask stupid questions."

"Sorry, babe. Do you think maybe they could pick somewhere farther away? Or do you feel like Antartica isn't remote enough for Arielle's liking?" He asked with a chuckle and she laughed.

"What's weird is that it's a suburban neighborhood, so it really doesn't make sense."

"I know. Hoes your leg?"

"I dunno. I forgot to take my pain meds before we left."

"I brought a couple, though."

"Really?"

"Yeah, just in case. I've got your back, babe."

"I appreciate you, babe."

"Aw, shucks. You're making me blush." He teased, leaning over to kiss her softly as traffic on the freeway slowed to a stop. "I really like doing that whenever I feel like it."

"I really like it when you focus on driving." She teased and he smirked as traffic started to move again.

* * *

"Where are we, daddy?" Carlee mumbled tiredly as Dean picked her up from her car seat and he smiled at Veronica. It was dark outside, but he still saw the smile on his girlfriend's face.

"We're at a friend's house." Was all he said as he carried her across the street with Veronica. She was limping slightly and it worried him but, as long as she was steady, he wasn't going to voice his concerns. He followed her down the path to the side of the house and down the stairs, stopping in front of the door.

"I don't want to be here, daddy." Carlee mumbled into his neck as Veronica knocked on the door.

"I don't either, Princess. But we have to." He mumbled as the door opened and he looked at the redhead version of Veronica.

"You didn't say that your partner was a hunk."

"Boyfriend, and you're married." Veronica corrected as she stepped inside and Dean followed her lead, carrying Carlee inside. "Where's Arielle?"

"She'll be here soon." The blonde who Dean could only assume was the computer genius, since she was playing with her laptop. "Hello, handsome."

"Just Dean will do." He stated with a wink and Veronica rolled her eyes. "Can we get to this? Carlee is getting antsy."

"Definitely. I'm going to need your DNA, too, super cop."

"In what form?"

"Hair. It's easier. Just make sure I get that little bulb at the end."

"You wanna pull it out for me?"

"Yeah, sure." It was then that Dean decided that Chloe was his favorite of Veronica's clones. She was just like his Ronnie, only she was blonde and he didn't like the facial piercings. But he liked the personality and flirtatious manner. Veronica was the only girl for him, though.

"Calm down, Princess. It'll be quick, I promise." Dean tried to soothe and Veronica rubbed her back.

"I did it, Carlee. You can do it, too. Be a big girl for me, kiddo." Carlee only nodded as Chloe stuck the tweezers in Carlee's hair and pulled at a strand.

"That's my Princess." Dean praised as Chloe walked away and Carlee buried her face into his neck. "How long do we have to stay here? We have to work in the morning."

"Work?" Leanna asked and Dean stared at her.

"Murders don't solve themselves and most murderers don't turn themselves in on their own."

"Can you tell us about the Collins case?" Arielle asked as she let herself in and Dean shook his head.

"Nope."

"You didn't tell us that Veronica's boyfriend was a hunk." Leanna stated, fanning herself as she threw a wink in Dean's direction.

"Honestly, he's not that great."

"You know you want me." Dean teased and Veronica smacked his arm as Arielle glared down at him.

"You're lucky we need the kid, otherwise I wouldn't waste my time with you."

"Watch yourself, Simmons." Veronica stated, standing up to stare down the lawyer, since her boots gave her an extra two inches on the lawyer.

"Sorry to break up this battle of the alpha females, but we've just hit a breakthrough."

"Breakthrough?" Dean asked, sitting up straighter and and Chloe nodded.

"There's a significant difference in Veronica's DNA than there is in ours."

"How significant?"

"Yours holds the dominant fertility gene, while all of us have the recessive gene which makes us infertile. You and Collins must be the originals. I know that this is a stretch, but do you think you could get a sample of White's DNA? I'll drive into the city to pick it up, but this would be a huge assist."

"I dunno."

"Ronnie, we can make it happen." Dean assured and everybody stared at him.

"You can?" Chloe asked and he nodded.

"Dean, last time we were in evidence storage we almost got caught."

"Yeah, but we spent more time arguing than we did what you wanted to do. We'll come up with a plan, babe."

"You might be of some use after all." Arielle mumbled and Dean rolled his eyes.

"Of course you would find me useful after I've agreed to break the code of conduct to get you what you want."

"You're doing this for Veronica, not me, and you know it."

That may have been the case, but he wasn't going to tell her that to her face.


	14. Chapter 14

He liked spending the weekend with his girls. Of course since it was the middle of January, there wasn't much for them to really do, but Veronica thought that walking around the aquarium wouldn't be a total waste of time, so that's what they did. Carlee was absolutely enamored with everything they walked by, Dean thought it was adorable. He remembered when he was her age and spent his days trying to figure out why his mom drank so much, and growing up with a personal vow to make sure his kid wouldn't grow up in a broken home or wonder where their next meal was coming from. Carlee may not have been his flesh and blood child, but he was going to be there for her and give her a better life than he had as a child. He was going to be the father figure he didn't have in his life.

"What are you thinking about?" Veronica asked quietly, trying not to pull Carlee's attention away from the fish in the large tank. He liked the way she had both her arms wrapped around his one arm and still managed to hold his hand.

"It's nothing."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure, Ronnie. Look at the fish, babe."

"I'm not seven, Dean. I know there's something on your mind."

"We'll talk about this later."

"Promise?"

"I promise." He assured with a smile, leaning down and kissing her softly. "I really like this whole couple thing."

"I do too." She murmured, pulling him down the corridor as Carlee started to walk forwards.

"Can we go to a park after this?"

"It's cold outside, Princess. Maybe we can go to McDonald's and you can play in the play place, if it's alright with mommy dearest." Dean suggested, looking down at Veronica.

"Sure, we can get some food while we're there."

"Thank you, mommy!"

"Inside voices." Veronica reprimanded and Carlee nodded.

"Sorry."

"You're good, squirt." Dean acknowledged and Veronica smiled at him. "We're good parents."

"We are. I'll admit that when we first signed the papers, I was scared as hell to be an official parent. But this isn't too terrifying."

"I think the fear sets in when she started going to school." Dean mused and Veronica nodded. "Making friends and kissing boys, that kind of thing."

"I don't think going to school implies boyfriends."

"I had a girlfriend when I was her age. She wasn't like you, I think I scared her."

"Good thing you don't scare me."

"I don't know what I'd do if you were afraid of me, babe."

"That's not going to happen. I trust you more than I trust myself." She assured and he kissed her softly.

"Daddy! Come look at the turtles!"

"We're comin', Princess."

* * *

Inspired by their trip to the aquarium, Dean bought Finding Nemo on their way home and after dinner they all cuddled on the couch to watch it. He knew that Veronica wasn't going to make it through the movie. He needed her to fall asleep and stop worrying about how they were getting into the evidence storage and stealing evidence without being seen or signing in. He had a plan, she wouldn't like it, but that didn't change the fact that he had a plan.

"Daddy?"

"Yes, Princess?"

"If I got lost in the ocean, would you try to find me?"

"Of course I would, Princess. Don't ask silly questions."

"I'm glad that you and mommy kept me."

"I am, too, Princess."

"Are you and mommy married?"

"No, we're not married."

"Are you going to get married?" It was an innocent question, that stirred an internal conflict in him. He could see himself being with Ronnie forever. But he didn't know if she saw that. He didn't know if she ever planned on getting married, since they never talked about that. He'd listen to her drunken ramblings about her boyfriends, but now he was her boyfriend. Did she see him as another "non committal douchebag", or did she see him as a guy in it for the long haul with her? So, he gave the only answer he was sure Carlee would understand.

"If she wants to. Watch the movie, Princess. We're going to bed after this."

"Okay."

He couldn't focus on the movie, though. All he could think about was having a future with Veronica. Having kids of his own with Veronica. But first, he knew they had to figure out all the business with her clones.


	15. Chapter 15

"So, no distraction. No lookout. Just you and me dropping in there, getting what we need, and getting out?" Veronica asked as they walked back from the coffee shop on their break and Dean nodded.

"Yep. It'll be just like that time we snooped around in that one guys house even though we didn't have a warrant."

"We got in so much trouble."

"We could get into a lot of trouble with this, so what's you point?" Dean asked as they entered the precinct and Veronica sighed. "Ronnie, babe, look at me." She did as he requested right before they reached the staircase and she could see a lot of things in his eyes.

"What's up?" She asked, a bit concerned.

"You know that we can do this fresh and clean. We've done it before, we can do it again." He tried to assure her, but she bit her lip so he knew she was conflicted.

"Can't we push it back?"

"No, babe. The faster we do it, the faster we end all this club business."

"You guys still haven't had sex yet?" Dolph Ziggler, a narcotics officer that Veronica had dated a couple years ago, asked as he walked passed them and she rolled her eyes.

"We have, and he was much better than you ever were." Veronica defended and Dolph actually looked offended. "He lasts longer, too." Dean didn't have anything witty to say to the speechless Ziggler, so he only shrugged, but winked as he walked around Ziggler and followed Veronica up the stairs.

"I probably last longer than most men." He murmured quietly into her ear and she shrugged.

"I know, and I love it." He smiled and kissed her cheek as they entered the Homicide office and Veronica propped her feet on her desk as soon as she sat down.

"Is it your leg?"

"Mhm. I'll be fine, though."

"You sure?"

"My meds haven't kicked in yet. I'll be fine, babe."

"If you say so." He conceded, playing Galaga on his laptop, but looking up at her every few minutes. He didn't like the way her eyes were shut tight in obvious pain. But he couldn't push her of she'd push him away. They were the same like that. That was one of their problems that they had to work on together.

* * *

"It's not rocket science, babe." Dean chided as Veronica struggled with getting into the small window.

"You have an ass like mine and try getting into windows like this." She defended as she finally slid into the evidence storage room. Rather than her boots that gave her a couple inches and grip on the slipper sidewalks, she was in a pair of vans. Dean suggested it since her boots were loud as hell and they wanted to remove as many reasons they could get caught to a minimum.

"I like your ass, though. It's lovely." He grunted as he dropped into the storage room and she rolled her eyes, grabbing his hand and leading him to the box was. Only problem was that it wasn't there. There was a sticky note though.

_'White case reopened by detectives Rollins and Reigns.'_

"Our fuckin' luck." Dean sighed, kicking at the ground while Veronica dropped to her knees and pulled at her hair in frustration.

"What do we do now?" She asked when he knelt down in front of her and pulled her hands away from her head. She could see the frustration in his eyes as he lightly kissed each of her knuckles but he didn't say anything. "Dean?"

"We just have to get it another way. Don't worry, Ronnie. I'm thinking up a plan."

"Okay."

"Let's get out of here. Carlee is probably wondering where we ran off to." He suggested as he stood, pulling her to her feet in the process.


	16. Chapter 16

Veronica really liked the mornings. She got to wake up to Dean Ambrose every morning, and sometimes he was naked. What was not to love about that? He was easily the sexiest man on Earth, and he was all hers. She felt lucky to be in a relationship with her best friend. Nobody understood her like Dean did.

"Good morning, babe." He mumbled with a small smile and she smiled as he opened his eyes.

"Good morning."

"How about we make it a better morning?" He asked with a teasing smirk and she bit her lip.

"Carlee-"

"-won't wake up for another hour at the very least. It's Saturday, Ronnie." He cut her off as he started to push her pajama pants down and she sighed, but let him have his way. "You need to relax, babe. I can help with that." He mumbled, pressing his lips to hers softly and moving so that he hovered over her as he dominated the kiss. He liked how Veronica would just allow him to lead, but actively participated. It showed that she trusted him, and all he needed was the confirmation of trust. "Do you trust me?" He whispered in her ear before kissing down her jawline.

"With my life." There was something in her olive green eyes that he didn't recognize, but he could feel that it was positive.

"I love you, babe." They both froze upon realization of what had slipped from his mouth, and it scared him. So instead of looking her in the eye and awaiting her reaction, he pressed his face into her neck and continued to head down his path to ravaging her. Her hands slid up the front of his torso and around to his back, finding their home in his messy sandy blonde curls while he pushed her tank top up to expose her flat stomach. He kissed around her navel, getting dangerously close a to a particular part of her anatomy, but stopped and slid back up to steal her lips in a kiss as he rolled his hips against hers.

"Stop teasing, Dean." She whined, making him smirk.

"Tell me what you want, Veronica." He prompted, pressing his groin into hers while she but her bottom lip.

"I want you inside of me."

"Right now? No foreplay?" He asked as he started to push down his boxers and she nodded.

"No foreplay." She confirmed, lifting her hips when she felt his fingers dip into the waist band of her underwear.

"I'm hungry." Carlee called into the room and the couple froze, looking to the doorway. "Can you make breakfast, daddy?"

"Sure thing, Princess. I'll be out in a minute." Carlee nodded and continued down the hall to the living room, leaving Veronica to stare up at Dean in confusion. What were they supposed to do? Obviously they were supposed to go cook breakfast, but what was he going to do? Was he going to fuck her? She wouldn't mind if he decided to do that. She wouldn't mind in the slightest. "I'm so torn, Ronnie. I don't want to leave you unsatisfied, but she's hungry."

"I'll go get started on breakfast. You take care of your not-so-little friend." Veronica suggested, sitting up so she was face-to-face with the man who told her he loved her five minutes ago. "Did you mean it?"

"Did I mean what?" He asked as she stood up and corrected herself.

"Never mind. Go jerk off, I'll be in the kitchen." The now confused and upset Veronica said as she left the bedroom, leaving an equally confused and upset Dean behind. He knew she was talking about him dropping the l-bomb. It was just easier for him to play dumb because he wasn't sure what her reaction would be if he had told her that he was in love with her and had been since their partnership started five years ago. But judging by her reaction to him playing dumb, she wanted him to mean it. Why did that one sentence complicate everything.


	17. Chapter 17

After their little exchange, Ronnie basically cold shouldered Dean. He expected it, and he knew that he deserved it. He knew that he fucked up what was a wonderful thing, but he didn't know how to fix it. He couldn't just pin her to the wall and say it to her repeatedly until she spoke to him. She'd probably hit him. She was good at that. The only upside was that she still let him sleep in her bed. He'd been dealing with it for a week, But he couldn't take it much longer. He needed to make her understand that he meant it.

"Ronnie."

"Yes?" She didn't even look up from her paperwork.

"We need to talk." That got her attention.

"Do we?"

"We do."

"Here's all I want to say to you right now, Dean: there's nothing to talk about." He sighed at her harsh tone, but went back to work.

"Are you breaking up with me?" He mumbled, not wanting to look up at her.

"No, I'm not." That was another plus.

* * *

It was another one of those nights where he couldn't sleep. Instead, he found himself watching her sleep. She always looked to be at peace while she slept, even in times of mass weirdness like they were in now. Even though she was pissed off, she still held onto him while she slept. She needed him, he knew that. Just like he needed her. Nobody understood him like she did.

Eventually, he felt the fatigue from the day's events begin to set in. But as soon as his eyes closed, she started sleep talking. The only things he could make out of her mumbles were "don't", "please", and "no more". That was enough for him to feel like he needed to save her from whatever nightmare she was having.

"Ronnie. Ronnie, baby, wake up." He shook her slightly as he sat, pulling her up with him. "Come on, Ronnie. Wake up for me."

"Dean?"

"I'm here, Ronnie." He assured, smoothing her hair down while he held her close to his chest. "I'm here."

"Don't leave me." She sounded like she was begging, in his opinion. Veronica Chambers didn't beg, so he knew that the nightmare had her shaken.

"I love you too much to leave you." He murmured into her hair, but she had already fallen asleep in his arms.

"Daddy!" Carlee shouted and Dean sighed as he laid Veronica down.

"I'll be back, sweetheart." He assured, kissing her forehead before slipping out of bed to head to Carlee's room where the five year old sat in bed with the blankets pulled up to her eyes. "What's the matter, Princess?"

"There's a monster in my closet." She mumbled, voice muffled by the blanket.

"I'm certain that there isn't a monster in your closet, Princess." He tried to assure, but she wasn't having it.

"Yes there is!"

"Carlee, monsters aren't real." Dean stated firmly, trying not to raise his voice at her.

"Yes they are! There's one in my closet!"

"Do you want me to check?" She only nodded frantically and Dean sighed, as he stood from where he was seated on her bed and made his way towards the closet.

"Can you get your gun?"

"I don't need my gun to fight a monster that isn't real." He reasoned as he opened the door and was face-to-neck with another man. "Who the fuck are you?" The only answer he got was a hand around his neck and Carlee's screams as the much larger man slammed him against the wall.

"Where's Four?"

"I don't know who you're-" The man's grip tightened around his throat, effectively silencing him before tossing him aside.

"I know you're lying. Where is she!?" Dean started to answer, but the boot pressed into his neck stopped him. "Veronica Chambers. Five-foot-eight, about one hundred and thirty pounds. Where is she!?"

"I'm not telling." Dean croaked out, feeling a bit proud as the stranger let out a growl of frustration just before a two gunshots rang out from the doorway and the man fell to his side, clasping his thigh. "Ronnie."

"Other cops are on their way, along with some paramedics."

"I don't need-"

"Shut the fuck up. Yes you do." She murmured into his ear as she helped him sit up and lean against the wall.

"I told you monsters were real." Carlee muttered, staring down the man Veronica had shot.

"Carlee, not now." Veronica scolded as she pushed Dean's hair back. "You were willing to die to protect me?"

"I love you, Ronnie. I'll do anything to protect you."

"You're an idiot." She stated bluntly, but cracked a smile as she pressed her forehead to his. "But, I suppose you're my idiot now."

"Does your knight in flannel pants get a kiss as compensation?" He asked with a smirk and she gave a smirk of her own.

"After you survive the hospital."


	18. Chapter 18

"They don't need to keep me overnight, Ronnie." Dean tried to argue, but Veronica wasn't having it.

"It's five hours, technically, they're letting you go at eleven and it's six now. Just sleep, Dean." Veronica spoke softly, running her fingers through his hair repeatedly. Carlee had already fallen asleep on Dean's chest and Veronica sat beside him on the bed with him leaning into her with his head on her chest. "I'm going to get some coffee."

"Be careful, Ronnie."

"Of course, babe." She kissed his head and slipped from the bed, her vans landing against the linoleum with a small thud. As she walked away, Dean have her an approving once over, but for the first time noticed the birthmark just below her elbow. What if the other clones didn't? That's another thing he'd have to run by Veronica and Chloe next time they attended Clone Club.

Veronica walked down the halls of the hospital, knowing what room she wanted. She had to speak to the man who broke into her apartment and attacked Dean. She wanted answers, especially since he was looking for her. She planned on gifting him with her presence, then demanding him to tell her about the clones. That was her Plan A, and her only plan, since she didn't have long before Dean would want to come looking for her. That was one of those things about having a protective boyfriend that could be adorable or annoying depending on the situation.

Flashing her badge to the two officers keeping watch, she requested five minutes alone with the guy and the officers nodded, going off to get coffee. She stepped into the room and shut the door, breathing a sigh of relief when she saw that the large man was in a straightjacket with his ankles cuffed to the hospital bed. The lights were off except for the overhead light at the head of the bed and the curtains were drawn, making the room slightly ominous.

"I knew curiosity would get the best of you." He drawled and she jumped, not expecting him to be awake. "It's good to see you again, Four."

"We've never met." She stated confidently, sitting down in the chair at his bedside.

"You were just an infant." He hadn't looked at her once, and she wasn't sure if he would.

"Whatever. Who are you?"

"They call me The Undertaker."

"Do you have a real name?"

"That's the only name I've ever known." He mumbled and she nodded.

"Uh-huh. Well, Mr. Undertaker, what do you want from me?"

"That's information I'm not required to share. You may be the only living original, but you don't have the authority to demand anything from me."

"So Collins and White were the other originals?" She got nothing but a nod. "Where was I actually born?"

"Belarus. Where exactly in Belarus, I do not know."

"So I'm Russian?"

"Sure."

"How many are there?"

"Seven. You must beware Five. She wasn't a fan of any of you. Although, last I was informed, she was in Germany."

"Germany." Veronica repeated as she stood. "Thank you." Again, the only response she received was a nod and she left the room. The officers had taken their place once again and she gave a nod in acknowledgement before heading back to Dean's room, grabbing a cup of coffee on her way so she didn't totally lie to him.

"What took so long?" He asked and she sipped her coffee as she made her way back to the bed.

"I had a conversation with our intruder." She informed as she got into into bed beside him.

"I wish you would've waited until I could've gone with you." He mumbled and she smiled, kissing his head.

"I can do some things on my own, Dean. I'm a big girl."

"I know, Ronnie. But the guy lifted me by my neck with one hand and threw me across the room. You weigh a hundred pounds less than I do, if he had gotten to you, it would've been much worse. What did he tell you?"

"When we get home I'll fill you in."

"You better. You still owe me a kiss."

"When we get home."

"Tease." He mumbled and she smirked.

"Get some sleep, babe. You haven't gotten any."

"I love you, Veronica."

"I love you too, Dean." Hearing that his feelings were reciprocated for the first time made him smile. "Now get some sleep, you little shit."


End file.
